This Course of Fortune
by xahra99
Summary: Ezio fulfils a promise he made to Claudia. One-shot. Complete.


This Course of Fortune

An Assassin's Creed fan fiction by xahra99

_Monteriggioni, 1480._

"You're leaving _again_?"

Ezio Auditore ducked. The leather-bound accounts book hit the wall and bounced, leaving a deep dent in the plaster. Claudia scowled at him from behind their uncle's desk, a furious frown on her face and a heavy ink-pot in her right hand.

Ezio considered his options. He knew from experience that the charms that worked so effectively on other women completely failed to impress his sister. He advanced, using the heavy book as a shield."I didn't think you cared!"

Claudia hesitated. Her scowl deepened. "Care?" she said crossly. "Of course I care."

Ezio had reached the desk. He lowered the book cautiously and snatched the inkwell from his sister's upraised hand. He placed it on the top shelf of one of the bookcases that lined the room, careful not to mark his sleeves with the liquid. "I've _got_ to go. I've got to support all of us now, _mia sorella_."

Claudia slammed her hand down on the desktop. "_Merda_, Ezio! Stop being so damn patronizing! Yes, I know. You must support us now. But surely there are better ways than this!" She clutched at her wrist. "And that _hurt_!"

Ezio, who had fondly imagined that his sister knew nothing of his new profession, floundered. "Many men serve as _condotierri,_" he pointed out.

"But you're not a _condotierri_, are you? _Bastardo_! I can read too, you know. God knows I've got nothing else to do here!"

"Get married?"

"_Vaffanculo_, Ezio! Just when were you planning to tell me?"

"Tell you _what_?"

"_That you're an assassin_!" Claudia's voice rose almost to a shriek. "And I suppose you know that Father was, too? Our heritage? I thought he was a banker! _Does everyone think that I'm stupid_? That I can't be trusted? Is that it?"

The door behind Ezio creaked open.

"Ezio," their uncle said, "I need to see you before you..." He paused in the doorway as both brother and sister fixed him with identical dark-eyed glares. Mario had not survived for fifty years without knowing when to retreat. "I'll talk to you later," he said, and closed the door.

Claudia sniffed. She collapsed into the deep leather chair behind the desk and buried her face in her hands.

"I didn't want to put you in danger_, Cara mia_."

"_Testa di merda_." Claudia said weakly, but he could tell that her heart wasn't in it. "Ezio, is it true?

Ezio wondered if he could get away by simply denying the accusation. He had a feeling that he couldn't. "Yes."

"Did you know about our father?"

"I swear, Claudia. None of us knew while he lived."

"But it's true, isn't it? You're an Assassin?"

"It's in our blood." Ezio protested. "We're not just hired killers. It's more than that."

"_Dio_, Ezio. You could end up dead!"

Ezio looked at the deep dent the book had left in the plaster behind him.

Claudia caught his glance. She blushed. "I didn't mean to throw it that hard! Besides, it wouldn't have killed you. Even if it had hit you. Which it didn't." She paused and, being Claudia, changed the subject. "So it was you who killed Alberti? And the Pazzi thugs?"

Ezio nodded.

He had dreaded Claudia's reaction to the news that her beloved elder brother was a killer. It was certainly ...not what he had expected. She rose from the chair and grabbed Ezio around the waist in a fierce hug. ""Thank god. _Bastardi!_ I hope they suffered!"

Ezio shrugged If thinking that their father's murderers had died screaming made Claudia feel better, then that was what he'd let her think. He shifted. "Claudia, _non mi scazzare i coglioni_."

"Sorry." Claudia pulled back. "I want to help."

"You can't." Ezio said bluntly. "You're a woman."

"That has nothing to do with it!"

"Claudia, if you weren't a woman you would have been killed with our father!"

"Oh, I don't want to kill people," his sister said breezily. She frowned. "Apart from you, and then only sometimes. I could dress up as a servant girl, I suppose, and seduce a guard or listen in..."

"No!"

"That's it. Just no? I'm _family_, Ezio." Claudia set her jaw. "I heard that you accepted help from thieves."

"Who told you about that?"

She didn't answer the question. "So you consort with thieves and whores and that's all right for you just because you're a _man_?"

"I do what I have to."

"You enjoy it."

"That's not true!"

"Isn't it? Look, you can't stop me. You're leaving. What do you expect me to do? Sit here quietly like a little mouse and keep your accounts? Ezio, do you have any idea just how boring that is? For that matter, do you have any idea how boring being a _woman_ is?"

Ezio made the mistake of trying to reason with her. "The ones I've talked to all seem happy..."

"You've talked to women? There's a surprise! Was that during the ten seconds it took for you to unlace your breeches? Maybe you think all women are fit for is pleasure and babies? Is that it?" Claudia's voice rose in volume.

"I didn't say that!"

"But you were thinking it!" Claudia said venomously.

"I respect women!"

"Every night! Oh, you're impossible!"

Ezio scrabbled around for a solution. Even their father had found it hard to handle Claudia when she got into a temper."Promise me that you won't do anything stupid."

"Oh, don't worry. I don't want to run around on cold dirty rooftops like you do." Claudia said scathingly. "I could find out more about the Assassins. Mario hasn't looked at some of these books for years."

Ezio would much rather have been running around on cold dirty rooftops than stuck in a library with a load of old books, but he carefully did not mention this to Claudia. "Why didn't you say so?" he said, relieved. "Read all the books you want."

"I'll like a tutor." Claudia patted at her hair, tucking stray strands into her silver-gilt hairnet. "Mother always wanted me to continue my studies." She glanced up at the ceiling, in the direction of the room where their mother prayed for the soul of her youngest son. "And I have nothing else to do."

"I'll send you one. I promise," Ezio said quickly. "I leave for Venezia tomorrow. I'll find you a scholar in _La Serenissima_. Is it a bargain?"

Claudia considered the arrangement carefully before she nodded.

"That's arranged, then. Now, you must excuse me. I have to talk to Mario."

Claudia curtseyed sweetly. "_Arrivederci_, Ezio."

"Such sarcasm, sister."

Claudia made an obscene gesture at him over the desk and reached for the inkwell.

Ezio slipped out the door just in time.

He found Mario writing letters in his study. Ezio was practiced at sneaking. He was sure he made no sound, but his uncle's head raised as he approached, like an old hound scenting deer.

"Looked like you were getting the worst of the argument, boy."

Ezio hooked a chair with the toe of his boot and settled down. "How do they _do_ that?"

"Women? Even I don't know that. It's just something they learn. At least she'll talk to you. Ungrateful girl."

Ezio shrugged. Privately he thought that both Mario and Claudia were far too stubborn to get on well together. He gestured towards the faded Codex pages that hung on the wall opposite his uncle's desk. "She knows."

"She can read?'

"Of course she can read. She used to have tutors. In fact, she's asked for another one. Do you have any objections?"

"Tutor? You need to find her a husband!"

Ezio shrugged. "What do I know of husbands?"

"All you know of husbands, _nipote_, is that they arrive at inconvenient times and they can't run quite as fast as you."

"_Non e vero_!' Ezio protested. "That's not true!"

"That's not what I've heard." Mario laughed. He continued. "I'll allow her a tutor, but she can use your room as a study. She might even be useful. She is an Assassin, after all. But you better find her a pliant man, one who does not argue." Mario yawned. "Good luck with that. I don't envy you."

"She'd be happier in town."

"She'd be dead in town. I know the palazzo isn't much-something you might be able to improve, Ezio-but it's better than nothing."

Ezio was forced to agree. Better than nothing was exactly how he would have described Monteriggioni. The palazzo was slightly more comfortable than it had been when they arrived two years previously, but it was dark, draughty and it smelt of dogs. "Thank you for looking after them," he said. "I'll send money."

Mario thumped his boots up on the table. "Where are you heading?"

Ezio shrugged. "The list my father gave me-it leads me to Venezia."

"Venezia? Hmm. be careful-very careful. Lorenzo can't protect you there. The Council of Ten is not to be trifled with, Ezio."

"I'm always careful."

"And I'm serious. You could end up in the Leads. Or worse, in a canal."

"Then it's a good job I can swim."

"Nobody can swim with weights tied to their feet. It is possible to honor our heritage by a less ...direct route, you know. I wish you'd taken my advice and become a _condottieri_."

"An honest soldier?"

"Not quite." Mario smiled like a fox. "But at least I have my men to back me up."

"I have the Medici."

"I know. That's what I'm scared of. Lorenzo's a good man, Ezio, but even great men change. He could wash his hands of you as easily as –that!" He clapped his hands. "The noble families think in bigger terms. They think nothing of sacrificing a pawn to win the game. "

"We're noble."

"Not any more, boy. You are an assassin and I'm a mercenary. And your sister, well, I hope she's working on her charms because there's no other way she'll find an honest husband. But-" he held up a hand as Ezio started to interrupt him-" I know it's no use. I told your father the same thirty years before. He was Lorenzo's Assassin too-and look where it got him."

"My father was a good man!"

"I did not say he was not. Hush, Ezio. You have more reason to take up his cloak than he had when he was your age. And you are too far along this path to turn back now, I think. The life will change you. But I pray that it does not."

"Do I look changed?"

The older man frowned. His hand reached up to touch the scar across his blind eye."Yes. You do."

Ezio ran a hand through his hair. A lock fell forward to touch his face and he tugged it through his fingers as if sifting for strands of grey. He changed the subject yet again. "Did you visit Venice in your travels?"

"Venice? Many times. A cold and lonely place. But its women are warm. Tread carefully, _nipote_; else you'll have a dozen little bastards before you know it."

Ezio grinned. "This is why I could never be a _condotierri_. Who wants to spend time with that many men when you can spend it with women?"

Mario laughed. "The villa will miss you," he said.

"Don't get sentimental, _zio_. You barely spend any time here as it is..." He hesitated. "You'll have to protect my mother and sister."

"Of course. But your sister's tongue alone is worth a dozen weapons."

"I agree." Ezio's tone was light. "And it _is_ strange that she should be able to sneak up on you with no training"

Mario spun around to find Claudia glaring at them both from the doorway. Her arms were folded and her hair was an inky black tangle. "Claudia? _Nipote_, what troubles you?"

"I need to speak with my brother." Her voice was dignified.

"We are finished." Mario bowed to her as he got up, an odd echo of courtly elegance in so battered a man. "I am sure Ezio will be on the lookout for a suitable husband for you. Ezio, I recommend a knight, Tell him to sleep in his armor at all times so her tongue does not slash him to ribbons before they have time to consummate the marriage.'

"I think that is quite enough advice.' Claudia said in a tone that could have cut glass."

Mario shrugged. "_Arrivederci_, Ezio. Travel safely."

"And you, uncle."

Claudia sniffed as Mario pushed past her. "I do not like that man," she said, loud enough for Mario to hear her.

"You're too alike." Ezio said without thinking. He blinked as a bellow of _'we are not' _came from the stairwell.

"Maybe-" Claudia said scornfully"-if _I _were an ugly, lecherous old man who thought of nothing save for war." She cocked her head but there was no response. Mario must have moved beyond earshot.

"He's your uncle too, you know."

"That doesn't mean I have to like him." Claudia sat down in the seat that Mario had so recently vacated, wrinkled her nose and stood up again. "Take care of yourself, Ezio, but don't forget to send me any handsome young men you meet on your travels."

"You don't trust Mario to find you a husband?'

"_Andate tutti a'fanculo_." Claudia told him sweetly.

Ezio shook his head. "I don't know where you learn words like that."

"You'd be surprised by what I know."

"Keep it to yourself."

"Or you'll have problems finding me a husband? Don't worry, Ezio. I am resigned to becoming an old maid, here with my books." There was a gleam in her eye that said she had resigned herself to nothing of the sort.

"I will miss you, you know," she told him abruptly. "Do send news."

"You send _me_ news, and I promise I'll find you a tutor." Ezio said-and promptly forgot all about it.

_Forli, 1480._

It took Ezio a week to travel to the port at Forli. He'd planned to take ship directly to Venezia, but the citizens of Forli were considerably more hospitable than he'd been led to believe.

_One_ of the citizens, anyway.

"So, you have a sister?" Caterina Sforza asked him as they lay in her bed, several days later. "Is she as attractive as her brother?"

The bed was a four-poster, shrouded in mosquito-nets that made the outside world seem very far away. It had been tested thoroughly, and had not been found wanting. They were both spent. Caterina spilled her secrets easily, talking about anything and everything, from Venetian politics to the latest papal scandal. And Ezio-well, he couldn't talk about his own secrets, so he talked about his family.

"She's my sister." Ezio twirled one of Caterina's red curls around his finger. "How would I know?"

"I am sure she's beautiful."

Caterina kissed him, and he pulled her close. "Not as beautiful as you."

"Oh, you're a charmer." She stroked the scar on his right hand gently, as if she was worried that it would hurt, and fitted her own, much smaller hand in his palm. "Is she married?"

"Claudia? No. For one, my family is far too disreputable to be a good marriage prospect. For another; she can and does flay men with her tongue. She is as sharp-toothed as a viper."

"But you love her."

"But I love her." Ezio agreed. He wrapped his arm around her shoulders and she nestled into his embrace with a sign of contentment. "And... I think I love _you_."

Caterina laughed. "Ezio, do not say that_. Dio mio,_ you have only just met me. And..."

"And what?"

"I haven't even given you reason yet..." she murmured as she kissed him.

Ezio grinned. "You are insatiable."

"_Certamente_. But aren't you glad you met me?"

"_Dio_, of course! I never thought that a single act of gallantry could be rewarded so...enthusiastically."

"Sometimes simple acts of gallantry can lead to surprising things." Claudia teased. "And you are so handsome. I could not resist. Besides," she added thoughtfully, "you looked at me as if you wished to strip me bare."

"And now I have my wish. Despite your husband."

"Despite my husband." Caterina agreed. Her hand moved beneath the sheet. Ezio groaned. And the conversation quickly moved to...other things.

It was dawn the next day before they surfaced. Caterina's bedroom was at the top of one of Forli's high towers, and she showed him around the rooms with more than a little pride.

"My library," she said finally, pushing open a large pair of double doors.

Ezio gaped. Books were expensive. Most homes owned one or even two. His father had had several shelves. The thick stone walls of the tower room were lined with books, shelves upon shelves that reached higher than his head. The air smelled of aged parchment.

'Impressive," he said, and meant it.

Caterina crossed to the window and threw open the casement. "My father always encouraged me in my studies." She looked at him quizzically. "It doesn't put you off?"

"It would take more than books." Ezio said. "No. This is good."

"You think so?" Caterina looked delighted.

Ezio picked a book from the nearest shelf. The script was curly and indecipherable. He put it down and picked up another, this time in Latin. "What do you study?" he asked, curiously."

She watched him closely. "The Arab sciences. Alchemy, for example..."

"Alchemy? Isn't that forbidden?"

Caterina rolled her eyes. They both laughed. "Do you study?"

"Myself? No. But I wondered if you could help me with a little problem."

Caterina smiled wickedly. "Not that little..."

"_Dio_! Not that... You remembered I mentioned my sister? I made a promise to her which I so far have failed to keep."

"And you always keep your promises to women? _Bene_! This is a good sign."

"She is in Monteriggioni, and she is bored."

"So would I be." Caterina said dismissively. "It's rather provincial."

"I promised her a tutor. You have many books and I wondered..."

"What sort of tutor?" Caterina cut him off.

"History, mainly. Latin, though, some Arabic would be useful. "

Caterina bit her lip. "Arabic? An uncommon specialty, surely. Nevertheless, I have somebody in mind."

"Who?"

"Carlo. He's my half-brother. He'll be perfect."

Ezio nodded uncertainly. _If he tries to take advantage of her, I will kill him,_ he decided and felt better.

Caterina giggled. "Don't worry, Ezio. She sounds like she can look after herself, this sister of yours."

"Does he know how to keep his mouth shut?"

"Ezio, all my family know how to keep their mouths shut." She smiled at him, amber-eyed and fierce as a tiger. "Mouths shut, and legs open, as my mother used to say. That is the way to men's hearts. And now, I think, it is time for you to go."

"So soon? I am wounded."

"My husband returns for the hunt today." She smiled. "And I think you are ready to leave. Otherwise, what will you do with the pass I arranged for you? Those things don't ask for ever, you know. I'll get one of the porters to let you out."

Ezio was already climbing out of the window. "No need."

Caterina watched him with frank amazement. "I already admired your athleticism, but I confess, I did not expect this," she said as he lowered himself over the sill.

Ezio wedged his toes into cracks in the brickwork. He balanced with one hand on the sill and pressed his hand to his heart. " We'll meet again."

"I certainly hope so..." Caterina murmured. The wind whipped her hair around her face.

"Your hospitality is indeed legendary."

"Really? But there is always room for improvement. You must come some other time..."

"With pleasure." Ezio faked a slip for the pleasure of hearing her tiny intake of breath. He caught himself on the sill and looked up at her as she shook her head at him.

"Any more of that and I'll push you off myself."

"You wouldn't be so cruel. Goodbye, _amoro mio_. "

Ezio slipped from the window. As he climbed down the walls, he caught a flash of Caterina's bright hair as she waved her scarf from the battlements like a lady in the tales.

_Venice, 1481_.

The letter was sealed with the stylized capital _A_ of the Auditore family. The address was scrawled and dappled with ink-blots. It looked as it if had been written in a hurry.

_My dear nephew,_

_I recently received a messenger from the Lady of Imola and of Forli. She has sent your sister Claudia a tutor. I believe that you may be behind this, Ezio. While I applaud your decision to honor your promises, I cannot approve. Remember that I warned you about the bastards?_

_I hope you know what you are doing. I highly doubt it._

_Cretino._

_Cordialmente, Mario._

Ezio read the letter through, sighed, and saddled up his horse. It had ben a long time since he had visited Monteriggioni.

It hadn't changed much.

Mario greeted him at the gate with a hearty slap on the back. "_Benvenuto_! How goes the slaughter?"

Ezio shrugged. He had spent most of his time in Venice hacking his was through his father's enemies, one throat at a time. "It goes slowly."

Mario shrugged.

"Where's Claudia?'

"With her tutor. She's rather useful, actually." He sounded surprised. "For one, she can translate those Codex pages you found. Does the books, too. Still moans about it, though. "

"And the tutor?"

"A prancing fool," Mario said. "But he does no harm, I suppose. He's tidy, and he doesn't eat much. Not bad, for a Sforza. And at least she talks to me now. Occasionally."

He showed Ezio around the villa, which had less of the air of a stable-block than it had had when he visited before, and more of a mansion. Assassination obviously paid better than mercenary work; the villa looked better than it had done for years.

"Where's Claudia?"

The old soldier jerked his head at the study. "She's in there."

Ezio went in.

Claudia didn't even notice him

A young man with dark hair sat next to her, their heads bent over a book as they worked together. He had Caterina's red hair and easy smile. As Ezio watched, he pointed out a word to her and she looked up at him and laughed. Her face shone radiantly.

_I must visit Forli_, Ezio thought.

In the old days he would have walked over and demanded to know what they were doing, but Ezio had matured during his year in Venice. Instead he closed the door quietly and walked away. He'd speak to them later. As he retreated, he heard Caterina Sforza's rippling laugh in his mind.

Of course, she'd planned it all.

Still, a Sforza for his sister? Not a bad match. Not a bad match at all.

_Hear me a little,  
For I have only been silent so long  
And given way unto this course of fortune  
By noting of the lady._

_Much Ado about Nothing; William Shakespeare_

Author's Notes: This story is a sequel of sorts to 'As the Sparks Fly Upward' and precedes 'Only the Devil Laughed,' although it can be read alone. It's definitely the most sitcom-ish of the three. It's set after the Pazzi Conspiracy, but before Ezio arrives in Venice. I decided to go with the game continuity, as Caterina Sforza wasn't even _in_ Forli in 1480 in real life. She did have two kids, though, and she was on the first of three husbands, but more about that later. She also had a brother called Carlo, although he was older rather than younger.

I have adopted the game's use of Rather Unnecessary Italian Phrases. Most of them are swear words. I don't speak Italian, so if any reader who does notices a mistake, please let me know.


End file.
